Collapsible go-cart.



0. KURZ.

GOLLAPSIBLE G10-CART.

APPLIUATION FILED 11110.12, 1911.

Patented Aug. 2o 1912.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

o. KURZ, COLLAPSIBL GO-GART.

APPLICATION FILED DBO.12, 1911.

Patented Aug. 20, 191.2.

2 SHEETS-SHBEIT 2.

f/wwfwv COLUMBIA PLANOCIRAPH C0., WASHINUTDN, D. Li,

rn STATES ,PATENT OFFICE.

OTTO KURZ, F CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO BAY STATE METAL WHEEL COMI-IPANY, OF EAST TEMPLETON, *MASSACHUSETTS A CORPORATION OF MAINE.

ooLLArsIBLE cro-CART.

Specication of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 20, 1912.

' To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, Or'ro KURZ, ay subject of the Emperor of Germany, ofChicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have inventedcertain new and useful Improvements in Collapsible G0 Carts, of whichthe following is a specification.

This invention relates to childrens carriages having relatively smallwheels, and known as go-carts, the construction being such that the cartmay be folded or collapsed for convenience in shipment and storage.

The invention has for its object to provide improved mechanism forsimultaneously reducing the distance between the front and rear wheelsto shorten the wheel base, and at the same time reduce the distancebetween the wheel axles and the base frame which supports the seat, top,andpush bars of the cart, the invention being embodied in a cart inwhich the wheels do not fold under the base frame, each pair of wheelsbeing mounted on a continuous axle so that the distance beilzween thewheels of each pair is invariab e. f

The invention consists in the improvements r'which I will now proceed todescribe and claim. o

Of the accompanying drawings which form a part of thisspecification,-Figure 1 represents a side elevation showing my improvedgo-cart opened or erected for use; Fig. 2 represents a side view showingthe cart collapsed; Fig. 3 represents a perspective view showing thebase frame, the axles, and the levers which connect the axles with thebase frame, the seat and its supporting springs and the wheels beingremoved; Fig. 4 represents a perspective view showing the seat and itssupporting springs and a portion of the hinged back; Fig. 5 represents asection on line 5-5 of Fig. 3.

The same reference characters indicate the same parts in all theiigures.

The base frame of my improved cart is composed of longitudinal sidemembers 12 connected at their forward ends by a front transverse member12a, these being preferably composed of a single bent strip, as shown byFig. 3.

The base frame is provided with front and rear downwardly projectingbrackets, each preferably composed of short strips riveted at theirupper ends to the side members' of the frame and at their lower ends toeach other, the two strips forming a V-shaped bracket. Each frontbracket is composed of the strips 13 and 14, and each rear bracket iscomposed ofthe strips 15 and 16, the upper ends of the several stripsbeing attached by rivets 17 to the base frame. The rivets 18, whichconnect the lower ends of Said strips, constitute journals on which twopairs oflevers 22 and 23 are journaled, said levers being rigidlyattached by rivets 19 `(Fig. 5)v to the front and rear axles 20, 21,and'being called the frontand rear levers. Each of said levers has alower arm and an upper arm, the lower arms being the portions shownbelow the rivets or journals 18 in Figs. 1 and 3, while the upper armsare the portions above said journals. When the cart is open or erectthelevers 22, 23 are substantially vertical, and the axles are at themaximum distance from the base frame,

the levers being securely held from swinging on the rivets 18 by themechanism hereinafter described.

To the upper arms of the rear' levers 23 are rigidly attached rearwardlyprojecting ears 24 forming bell crank lever arms. The push bars 26 bywhich the cart is propelled are pivoted at 27 to fixed parts of the baseframe, and preferably to the extended upper ends of the strips 16 of therear brackets. Said push bars are connected at their upper ends by theusual transverse handle 28 (Fig. 2) and are provided near their lowerends with forwardly projecting ears 29 which are connected by rods 30with the ears 24. The ears 24 and 29, and the links 30, constituteconnections between the push bars 26 and the rear levers 23, which causea forward movement of the push bars to the position shown by Fig. 2, ltopartially invert the rear levers 23 and thus move the rear axlelaterally toward the front axle and upwardly toward the base fra-me, thearms of the rear levers moving in the directions indicated by the arrowsin Figs. 1 and 3.

Connections are provided between the push bars 26 and t-he upper arms ofthe front levers 22, which also cause a forward movement of the pushbars to partially invert the front levers and move the front axle 2Olaterally toward the rear axle and upwardly toward the base frame, themovement of the arms of the front levers being opposite to that of thearms of the rear levers.

Said connections, as here shown, com- 1,10

prise foldable side guards at opposite sides of the base frame andcomposed of longitudinal members 31,'the rear ends of which are pivotedat 32 toV the vpush bars 26, and

upright members33, the lower ends ofwhich are pivoted at 34 to the baseframe, the

meeting endsA of-the said members-being pivf Ioted together at 35. Themembers 33 are connected with the upper arms of the front levers22 byconnecting rods 36, the arrangement being such that a forward movementof the push bars acts through the members 31. and 33, and connectingrods36 to partially invert the front levers.

It will now be seen that the push bars 26, in movingfrom the erectposition shown by Fig; 1, tothe folded position shown by Fig. 2, movethe axles simultaneously toward each other and upwardly toward the baseframe, the upper portions of the wheels being thus causedto projectabove the base frame. rlhe wheel basel is thus shortened and the heightof the cart reduced, without any increase in the length of the cart.

by.V the stops 14a, these stops abutting.I

l against the levers 22 when the cart is fully erected, as shown by Fig.1, and preventing further lateral movement of the front axle away fromthe rear axle. The said stops also act through the front levers 22,connecting rods 36, guard members 33 and 31, push bars 26, and theconnections between the push bars and the rear levers 23', to preventlateral movement of the .rear axle away from the front axle when thecart is fully erected. The rear levers 23 are preferably inclinedslightly forward fromtheir lower to their upper ends when the. cart iserected, as shown by Fig. 1, se that the weight of the cart body and itscontentsl will not'tenjd to displace or move the levers in thedirections indicated by thevarrows in Fig. 1.

The seat 38 of the cart is attached to longitudinal springs 3.9, havingU-shaped rear end portions, the extremities of which are attached totherear transverse member 12'b of the base frame, said member beingattached to the strips. 15 ofthe rear brackets and being located belowthe base frame. The forward ends of the springs 39 are attached tof thefront transverse member 12a of the base frame. The springs and seat. arefree to rise and fall in the space betweenthe side members 12 of. thebase vframe. The

usual back piece 41 is connected by hinges 42 with the. springs 39, andis adapted to swing Iforward over the seat, said. backL being sup-'ported when in use by a bail 43 pivoted at '44ste the guard members 31and engaged lyyith elongated oifset rods 45 attached to the ack.

Vhen the cart is erected the push bars 26 are held'against forwardmovement by folding rule-joint braces composed of links 46, 47, pivotedtogether at 48 and pivoted at their endsto the pushbars and to thesidemembers 12 respectively.

'I cl'ainiz-4 j 1. A collapsiblev go-cart comprising 'a base framehaving downwardly projecting front and-rear brackets, front and rearlevers fulcrurned on said brackets and having upper and lower arms,front and rear axles attached to the lower lever arms, and mechanism forsimultaneously swinging said levers in opposite directions, to move theaxles laterally toward each other and upwardly toward the base frame andcollapse the cart, the lower front and rear lever arms being movedtoward each other during ythe collapsing operation, and the upperportions of the wheelsfprojecting above the base frame when the cart iscollapsed, the front brackets being provided with stops which cooperatewith the lower arms of the ffront levers and with the lever-swingingmechanism in preventing the lower front and rear lever arms fromswinging away from each other when the cart is opened.v Y

2. A collapsible go-cart .comprising a rigid, non-collapsible base framehaving downwardly projecting brackets, invertible levers fulcrumed onsaid brackets and havingelower and upper arms, axles attached to thelower lever arms andy provided with wheels, said levers being adapted toswing in opposite directions toreduce they height of the cart, push barspivoted to the rear portion of the base-frame, and connections j betweenthe push bars andV the upper arms of the levers, whereby, when the pushbars are swung forward over the base frame, the levers are partiallyinverted, their lower arms and the axles being moved simultaneouslytoward each other and upward toward the base frame.

3. A collapsible go-cart comprising a base frame having downwardlyprojecting brackets, front and rear levers fulcrumed on said @bracketsand having lower and upper arms, gfront and rear axles attached to thelower lever arms, the leversl attached to the rear axle-being providedwith rearwardly projecting ears attached tothe upper arms,

push barspivoted to the rear portion of the i base frame andhaving'forwardly projecting Aears, links connecting thel ears on therear leverswith the ears on the push bars wherei by, when the push barsare swung forward the rear levers are partially inverted, andconnections between the push bars and the front levers whereby a forwardswinging movement of the push bars is caused to partially invert thefront levers, the axles being simultaneously moved toward each other andupward toward the base frame.

4. A collapsible go-cart comprising a base frame having downwardlyprojecting brackets, front and rear levers fulcrumed on said brackets,and having lowerand upper arms, front and rear axles attached to thelower arms, push bars pivoted to the 'rear portion of the base frame,foldable guards-composed of longitudinal members pivoted at their rearends to the push bars, and upright members pivoted at their lower endsto the base frame, the meeting ends of said guard members being pivotedtogether, links connecting said upright guard members with the upperarms ofthe front levers, said guard members and links being adapted topartially invert the front levers when the push bars are swung forward,and connections between the push bars and the upper arms of the rearlevers whereby a forward swinging movement of the push bars is caused topartially invert the rear levers, the axles being moved simultaneouslyinwardand upward toward the base frame.

5. A collapsible vgo-cart comprising a base frame having downwardlyprojecting brackets, front and rear levers fulcrumed on said bracketsand having lower and upper arms, front and rear axles attached to thelower lever arms, push bars pivoted to the rear portion of the baseframe, foldable guards composed of longitudinal members pivoted at theirrear ends to the push bars, and upright members pivoted at their lowerends to the base frame and at their upper ends to the forward ends ofthe longitudinal guard members, connections between the push bars andthe upper arms of the rear levers, and connections between .the uprightguard members and the upper arms of the front levers, whereby when thepush bars are swung forward the axles "are moved simultaneously towardeach other and upward toward the base frame.

6. A collapsible gofcart, comprising a base frame having downwardlyprojecting front and rear brackets, front and rear levers fulcrumed onsaid brackets and having lower and upper arms, front and rear axlesattached to the lower lever arms, push bars pivoted to the rear portionof the base frame, and connections between the push bars and the upperarms of the levers whereby the levers are caused to swing the axleslaterally toward each other and upwardly toward the base frame, thefront brackets being provided with stops which limit the movement of thefront levers in one direction.

7 A collapsible go-cart, comprising a base frame composed oflongitudinal side mem` bers having downwardly projecting front and rearbrackets, a transverse spring-supporting front member connecting theforward ends of the side members, and a transverse spring-supportingrear member attached to and connecting the rear brackets and locatedbelow the side members, longitudinally extending seat-supporting springsattached to said front and rear members, front and rear levers fulcrumedon said brackets, front and rear axles attached to the lower lever arms,and means for simultaneously swinging said levers to move the axleslaterally toward each other and upwardly toward the base frame, theupper portions of the wheels projecting `above the base frame andsprings when the cart is collapsed.

In testimony whereof I have ailixed my signature in presence of twowitnesses.

OTTO KURZ.

Witnesses:

FRED. W. DoBE, EMIL F. BERGER.

Gopies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C.

